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Mbappé Faces Haaland in Champions League Appetizer for World Cup. Troubled Liverpool Goes to Inter

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe poses with the trophy after scoring four goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Olympiacos and Real Madrid, in in Piraeus port, near Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe poses with the trophy after scoring four goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Olympiacos and Real Madrid, in in Piraeus port, near Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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Mbappé Faces Haaland in Champions League Appetizer for World Cup. Troubled Liverpool Goes to Inter

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe poses with the trophy after scoring four goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Olympiacos and Real Madrid, in in Piraeus port, near Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe poses with the trophy after scoring four goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Olympiacos and Real Madrid, in in Piraeus port, near Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

A Champions League clash between Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland will surely happen in the final one day.

On Wednesday, it is a routine league-phase game when Real Madrid hosts Manchester City and the most feared forwards in soccer cross paths for the third time in the competition since Haaland debuted in 2019.

Also this week, Liverpool brings its season of turmoil to San Siro against Inter Milan on Tuesday, when Bayern Munich hosts Sporting Lisbon. Paris Saint-Germain is at Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday, The AP news reported.

In the sixth of the eight rounds, league-leading Arsenal can become the first team to reach the 16-point total that last season ensured advancing direct to the round of 16, The AP news reported.

Arsenal is the only team with five straight wins on 15 points and needs to avoid defeat Tuesday at Club Brugge to reach the potential cutoff between eighth and ninth place in January.

Mbappé vs. Haaland Tuesday at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium likely won’t be the last time they meet this season.

France will play Norway on June 26 at the New England Patriots’ stadium in Foxborough, Mass., in one of the most anticipated games from the World Cup draw made Friday.

There might also be more in the Champions League given that Real Madrid and Manchester City met in the knockout rounds in each of the past four seasons. They combined to win three titles in that time though Mbappé still seeks his first.

Mbappé vs. Haaland first happened in the round of 16 in February 2020. Newly arrived at Borussia Dortmund, Haaland scored two in the first leg against Paris Saint-Germain and revealed his “Zen” goal celebration, sitting down cross-legged as if meditating. Mbappé and PSG won in Paris to advance 3-2 on aggregate score.

Last season, in the knockout playoffs in February, Mbappé scored four times including a hat trick in the second leg as Madrid beat Man City in both games, despite Haaland’s two goals in the first leg.

Mbappé’s four goals at Olympiakos last month lifted him to be top scorer in the Champions League this season. He needs one more to reach 10 in a Champions League season for the first time during his decade in the competition.

Haaland has five so far, and already got into double figures in three Champions League campaigns.

Madrid starts the week in fifth place on 12 points, two ahead of City in ninth in the 36-team standings.

Equally prolific Kane Harry Kane is just as prolific for Bayern Munich this season. He has scored 28 in just 22 games for Bayern plus five in five World Cup qualifiers for England.

Kane has kept pace with Haaland’s goal-a-game ratio in the Champions League and kept Bayern third in the standings, despite losing at Arsenal two weeks ago.

Ahead of Kane and Haaland is six-goal Victor Osimhen, who is fit to return with Galatasaray at Monaco on Tuesday. Both teams are in contention for a top-24 finish and places in the knockout stage starting in February.

Frankfurt fans return Barcelona hosting Eintracht Frankfurt is a repeat of a remarkable show of force by visiting fans four seasons ago — and one the Spanish club has now worked to avoid.

Eintracht’s road to winning the Europa League in 2022 included what looked and sounded like a home game to win 3-2 at Camp Nou in the second leg of the quarterfinals.

About 30,000 German fans were there after most bought tickets from Barcelona fans, who last week were warned by their club not to do that again.

“If the traceability of ticket purchases and their final destination reveals fraudulent behavior, the case will be referred to the disciplinary committee,” Barcelona said last week in a statement.

Barcelona is certainly favored to win this time. The La Liga leader scored five in winning at the weekend while Eintracht was routed 6-0 at Leipzig.

Winter is coming It will be an unusually early Champions League kickoff at 4:30 p.m. Central Europe Time when Kairat Almaty hosts Olympiakos on Tuesday. That is 8:30 p.m. in eastern Kazakhstan where evening temperatures can plummet in December.

UEFA planned well to schedule the game Tuesday instead of Wednesday. Forecast temperature at kickoff is about 0 Celsius (32 Fahrenheit) while it should be -12 C (10 F) at the same time one day later.

Bodo/Glimt’s European season continues at Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday after its domestic season finished in Norway being edged for the title by Viking. The Norwegian league avoids the bitter winter and Glimt has two more Champions League games in January, and maybe more in the knockout phase, during the Norwegian offseason.

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Mexico City Suspends Classes, Shifts to Remote Work for World Cup Kickoff

Souvenirs shaped like the FIFA World Cup trophy are displayed for sale on a street in Mexico City on June 8, 2026. (AFP)
Souvenirs shaped like the FIFA World Cup trophy are displayed for sale on a street in Mexico City on June 8, 2026. (AFP)
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Mexico City Suspends Classes, Shifts to Remote Work for World Cup Kickoff

Souvenirs shaped like the FIFA World Cup trophy are displayed for sale on a street in Mexico City on June 8, 2026. (AFP)
Souvenirs shaped like the FIFA World Cup trophy are displayed for sale on a street in Mexico City on June 8, 2026. (AFP)

Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum on Tuesday issued a decree ordering federal workers in the capital to work from home on June 11 and suspending school classes to ease traffic ‌during FIFA World ‌Cup opening ‌events.

The decree aims ⁠to improve urban mobility and road safety as Mexico City hosts the World Cup opening match and accompanying ⁠events on June 11.

The ‌opening events are expected ‌to draw significant numbers of ‌visitors.

Federal agencies must implement remote work schemes for Mexico City-based staff, with ‌exceptions for essential services including healthcare, security, critical ⁠infrastructure ⁠and World Cup operations.

Schools from preschool through university, both public and private, will close for the day under the decree.

The government also urged private companies to adopt similar remote work arrangements.

Sports

Iran Football Body Claims Fans’ Tickets for World Cup Games in the US Have Been Revoked

Reza Mansoori (R) and Mostafa Pourmanda, Iranian supporters living in San Diego and staying at the same hotel as Iran's national football team, cheer for their team in Tijuana, Mexico, on June 8, 2026, ahead of the FIFA 2026 World Cup football tournament. (AFP)
Reza Mansoori (R) and Mostafa Pourmanda, Iranian supporters living in San Diego and staying at the same hotel as Iran's national football team, cheer for their team in Tijuana, Mexico, on June 8, 2026, ahead of the FIFA 2026 World Cup football tournament. (AFP)
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Iran Football Body Claims Fans’ Tickets for World Cup Games in the US Have Been Revoked

Reza Mansoori (R) and Mostafa Pourmanda, Iranian supporters living in San Diego and staying at the same hotel as Iran's national football team, cheer for their team in Tijuana, Mexico, on June 8, 2026, ahead of the FIFA 2026 World Cup football tournament. (AFP)
Reza Mansoori (R) and Mostafa Pourmanda, Iranian supporters living in San Diego and staying at the same hotel as Iran's national football team, cheer for their team in Tijuana, Mexico, on June 8, 2026, ahead of the FIFA 2026 World Cup football tournament. (AFP)

FIFA has revoked the ticket allocation for Iran fans at the team’s three World Cup games in the United States, the national soccer federation claimed Tuesday.

Each federation for the 48 teams taking part is entitled to receive and distribute 8% of stadium capacity at the World Cup, adding up to several thousands of tickets for each game.

Just days before Iran opens its World Cup — on June 15 at the Los Angeles Rams’ stadium in Inglewood against New Zealand — the federation claimed in a statement reported by semi-official state media that it was now unable to provide any tickets to its supporters.

FIFA was approached for comment.

The claim adds to the turmoil between Iranian soccer, FIFA and tournament co-host the US, which began military attacks on Iran on Feb. 28.

Iran’s team is now based in the Mexican border city of Tijuana instead of its pre-war plan to train in Tucson, Arizona.

Some federation officials also have been denied visas to enter the US, where Iran also plays Belgium in Inglewood on June 21 and then Egypt in Seattle on June 26.

Federations of World Cup teams typically sell their ticket allocation to the most loyal fans who attend games at home and away.

Iran residents were subject to a travel ban by the US government since last year and were unlikely to get entry visas for the World Cup. It was unclear how many tickets in Iran’s allocation were sold since the tournament draw was made in December to the country's diaspora including in the US.

Still, FIFA president Gianni Infantino stated in 2017 — when US football officials were preparing a co-hosting bid with Canada and Mexico they won the following year — that fans must have access to the tournament.

“It’s obvious when it comes to FIFA competitions as well (that) any team, including the supporters and the officials of that team, who would qualify for a World Cup need to have access to the country, otherwise there is no World Cup,” Infantino said nine years ago. “That is obvious.”

A FIFA-appointed match referee from Somalia was denied entry to the US in Miami at the weekend and on Monday he was ruled out of taking part in the 104-game tournament that starts on Thursday.

Sports

World Cup Nears Kickoff after Pre-tournament Turbulence

The World Cup will kick off in the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Carl DE SOUZA / AFP
The World Cup will kick off in the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Carl DE SOUZA / AFP
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World Cup Nears Kickoff after Pre-tournament Turbulence

The World Cup will kick off in the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Carl DE SOUZA / AFP
The World Cup will kick off in the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Carl DE SOUZA / AFP

The World Cup kicks off on Thursday with FIFA betting that the enduring appeal of the greatest footballing show on earth can rise above anger at soaring ticket prices, an uneasy political climate in Donald Trump's America and the shadow of conflict in the Middle East.

A record 48 teams and millions of fans are set to descend on the United States, Canada and Mexico for the first ever World Cup co-hosted by three nations, the largest and most logistically complex edition of the tournament ever staged.

The action gets under way at Mexico City's iconic Estadio Azteca on Thursday, with co-hosts Mexico taking on South Africa at 3:00 pm local time (1900 GMT), launching a sprawling, nearly six-week-long spectacle that will culminate in the final at New Jersey's 82,500-seat MetLife Stadium on July 19.

Can Lionel Messi, at the age of 38, settle any lingering debate about his status as the greatest player of all time by leading Argentina to a second consecutive World Cup title?

Or can Messi's great rival, the 41-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo, defy father time by inspiring a talented Portugal team to its maiden World Cup win?

Or will England, led by Harry Kane, finally end the country's 60-year wait for a second major international championship following their lone 1966 World Cup victory?

Those questions and more will be answered over the course of a tournament that Gianni Infantino, the president of world football's governing FIFA, has bullishly hyped as "the greatest show that the planet has ever seen."

- Ticket fury -

Yet Infantino's breezy optimism has run into hurricane-force headwinds of skepticism during a build-up dogged by concerns over affordability, politics and conflict.

The skyrocketing cost of tickets to the tournament has triggered a global backlash which has left FIFA and Infantino struggling to mount a convincing public relations defense.

The most expensive ticket for the 2022 World Cup final cost around $1,600 at face value; in 2026 the most expensive face value ticket being sold by FIFA is an eye-watering $32,970.

That kind of inflation has been prevalent across the tournament's 104 matches, where seats for many games remain available on secondary re-sale markets despite huge demand.

Even Infantino's staunch ally, Donald Trump, has balked at the cost, reacting with surprise when told of the $1,000 price tag for tickets to the USA's opening game with Paraguay in Los Angeles on Friday -- the first game on US soil.

"I wouldn't pay it either, to be honest with you," the US president told the New York Post.

While fans absorb the expense of travel to the tournament, other critics have questioned whether the World Cup party will be soured by the political climate in the United States.

Human Rights Watch says Trump's crackdowns on immigration, demonstrations and press freedom could lead to a World Cup defined by "exclusion and fear."

Those fears were fueled Monday when FIFA dropped a Somali referee from the World Cup after he was denied entry to the United States.

Omar Artan was set to be the first match official from Somalia to referee at a global finals, but he was turned back when he arrived at Miami International Airport on Saturday.

FIFA said it was powerless to influence the decision and announced it had omitted Artan from its 52-strong referees roster.

The US-Israel military strikes launched against Iran in February have also loomed large over the tournament, where Iran are due to play three group games in the United States, starting with their opener against New Zealand on June 15.

Trump initially suggested Iran should withdraw from the tournament for their own "life and safety" before walking back his rhetoric.

Iran meanwhile have switched their base camp from Tucson, Arizona to the Mexican city of Tijuana, where they touched down early Sunday.

While Iran's players are free to travel in and out of the United States, some 15 administrative and management staff have been denied visas by US authorities in a move Iranian authorities have condemned as "deliberate and discriminatory treatment."

- Expanded field -

On the field, the decision to expand the tournament to 48 teams -- up from 32 in 2022 -- is likely to strip the group stage of any sense of jeopardy.

A total of 72 first-round matches will be needed to eliminate just 12 teams, with 32 advancing to the knockout rounds -- the top two finishers in each of the 12 first ground groups along with the eight best third-place finishers.

The tournament will see a range of other innovations.

For the first time in World Cup history, every game will feature cooling breaks in the middle of each half, a measure designed to mitigate the effects of searing heat and humidity expected at many of the tournament's 16 venues.

Players and referees will need to adjust to several new rules being rolled out at the World Cup, including teams being required to make substitutions inside 10 seconds to prevent time-wasting.

A crackdown on racist abuse will see players risk a red card for covering their mouth with a hand, arm or shirt during a confrontation with an opponent.

Next month's final, meanwhile, could well be the longest on record due to the decision to stage a Super Bowl-style halftime show, headlined by Madonna, Shakira and BTS.

The show means the half-time interval will be stretched from the traditional 15 minutes to around 25 minutes.